This is a song lyric that comes from one of my favorite songs, The Breeze by Dr Dog.

Are you moving much too fast?
And the good times that just don't last
If you're always on the go
Make an angel in the snow
And freeze

 

Do you feel like you're stuck in time?
Forever waiting on that line
If nothing ever moves
Put that needle to the groove
And sing

 

Is it a dream
Keeping you awake
Is it the stillness that makes you shake?
If you need to know for sure
What's on the ocean's floor
You'll sink

 

Do you like things the way they seem
Or are you looking behind the scenes
Well if you gotta know
What it takes to make it so
Just believe

 

Are dark parts to your mind
Hidden secrets left behind
Where no one ever goes
Everybody knows
It's alright

 

Do you get dizzy
On the ground?
There must be something
Going around
What blows us here today
Will blow us all away

Its beautiful to capture such depth in so few words.  10 words, 12 syllables, everything you need to know about the temporal nature of existence.  This is true from many points of view. 

The planet Earth was formed 4.578 billion years ago, from components that were blown together by intergalactic winds created by exploding stars.  Or something like that.   Before that “the Solar System formed from a large, rotating cloud of interstellar dust and gas called the solar nebula, orbiting the Milky Way’s galactic center.”  Ultimately, we are a random animal on a planet composed of random pieces blown into each other by wind and attracted to each other by gravity.  The winds and gravities that shaped the current existence will continue to shape the future, eventually tearing everything apart into something new, the cycle repeating forever.

But why does the wind blow?  Its easy to answer that, on earth, the wind blows because the sun warms parts of the surface of the earth, the atmosphere warms up which causes those air molecules to rise above cooler molecules not in the sunlight.  Thus, wind is cascading sheets of molecules rising up or falling down because of discrepancies in the intensity of molecular vibrations.  That is a nice and neat explanation that solves the technical question, but on a deeper philosophical level, why has anything ever moved?  Was there ever a time when the universe was just a windless lump of whatever, sitting perfectly still?  In all likelihood, no, which then leads us to believe that molecules have probably always been moving, meaning objective stillness is impossible.  From this we can conclude that wind is a fundamental aspect of existence - things move around, always and forever.  And just as they have moved into this current configuration, the molecular assortment will keep on changing forever, at some point becoming unrecognizable, a perpetual shape shifting.

There are people who have the goal of living forever.  This idea of living “forever” is demolished by the fundamental truth of What Blew Us Here Today Will Blow Us All Away.  If nature wasnt temporary and impermanent towards everything people wouldnt have had the opportunity to evolve into existence to question its temporariness.  I am all about living for thousands of years but I have no illusion that even with the best technology I will most certainly be gone one day.  The entire movie The Fountain can be summed up in this one sentence as well, but its still worth watching for its cinematic awesomeness.

Here we are, blown together onto a most perfect little planet.  Not too big, not too small, not too cold, not too hot, not too still, not too windy.  Plenty of natural resources have been blown here as well, for all practical purposes there are no shortages.  Some how, some way, all of the factors necessary for the creation of conscious animals were put in place in a location of the universe quiet enough a for long enough period of time to allow for our evolution and existence.  This understanding is beyond beautiful, a perspective that is a true gift.  Go outside, walk around, look up at the sky.  Think about the sun, how it powers us with its light, existing not too close and not too far away.  Go out tonight when its really dark and look at the stars.  You are looking at a galaxy larger than your comprehension.  Through all of this, we have been blown together, a perfect animal with the opportunity to live an amazing life.  Enjoy and embrace this rare existence, we are alive now but what blew us here today will blow us all away.